Articles of footwear typically include an upper and a sole structure attached to the upper. For example, athletic footwear typically includes an upper secured (e.g., via adhesive and/or stitching) to a midsole that provides some level of cushioning to a user depending upon a particular use. An outsole is also typically provided to engage the surface upon which the user is walking or running, where the outsole is designed to withstand some degree of wear during use.
A variety of different sole structure configurations having varying designs and degrees of cushion, flexibility and rigidity are known, where the different configurations can be designed depending upon the terrain in which the footwear is used as well as a particular user activity (e.g., walking, running/jogging, hiking, etc.). For example, a runner typically desires a shoe that provides comfort to the user's foot while ensuring adequate cushioning and flexibility to prevent foot injuries and/or enhance user performance for a particular running activity. If the sole structure of a running shoe includes minimal cushioning structure, e.g., to reduce the weight and/or increase flexibility along portions of the shoe, user comfort might be sacrificed along with a potential increase in user injury. In contrast, a sole structure for a shoe that includes a significant amount of cushioning, while potentially minimizing user injury and enhancing user comfort during running, may negatively impact user performance due to increased weight of the shoe and/or reduced flexibility within the sole structure of the shoe.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an article of footwear (e.g., for running and/or other athletic activities) including a sole structure that maintains adequate cushioning and comfort to the user while also having sufficient flexibility to enhance the natural gait cycle (heel-to-toe strike) of the user during foot movements as well as facilitating an easy heel-to-toe transition of the user's foot during the stance phase (weight-bearing phase of the gait cycle).